The Five Boroughs

New York City is made up of five boroughs: the Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens and Staten Island. Each one has enough attractions—and enough personality—to be a city all its own. Learn more about them with this guide.

In olden times, people celebrated the arrival of May with a day of dancing—around the maypole—so it's fitting to find plenty of dance on the bill in New York City this month. Both New York City Ballet and American Ballet Theatre get their spring seasons into gear, and both pay homage to Shakespeare's 450th birthday with en pointe versions of his Midsummer Night's Dream. DanceAfrica returns to BAM once again, this time shining a light on artists from Madagascar, and Dance Parade takes to the streets (Broadway, in fact) with a more ecumenical approach—150 troupes, more than 75 styles of dance on display and a chance for spectators to join in at the DanceFest immediately following. City streets also take on a new look when a legion of sailors are on the town for Fleet Week, giving civilians a chance to check out the cut of their jib (and visit their ships). On the art front, Frieze New York anchors NYCxDESIGN week, and the Metropolitan shows off some of its Pre-Raphaelite masterpieces. Film and football also take their turns at center stage, with the New York African Film Festival at Lincoln Center and the NFL Draft at Radio City Music Hall.